By Ian Bremner
Staying on top of all the wonderful new music can feel like an impossible feat. If a record truly hooks you and you spend a week soaking in it, by the time you come up for air you inevitably miss 3-4 projects you would have otherwise adored. As a fan, it’s only overwhelming. As an artist, it’s gotta feel borderline cruel knowing the window of interest is ever-shortening. It didn’t always feel like standing at a conveyer belt and struggling to pluck a new release from a infinite stream of music, but here we are. The mode of discovery is different these days. Even still, the feeling of hearing something you know will be sticking with you for a long time never gets old. Luckily, there is no shortage of that feeling in 2024.
Art should not be competitive so it’s long overdue to rename “best records” to “favorite records.” Though the list could be doubled or tripled in length easily, there was a firm commitment to stick to a tight 30 this year.
Below is an unranked list of favorite records & EPs of the year. If you like what you hear, I encourage you to dive in further.” Listen to the playlist at the bottom:
Waxahatchee – Tigers Blood
Richard Tripps – Between The Morning
Rich Ruth – Water Still Flows
David Nance & Mowed Sound – David Nance & Mowed Sound
Nala Sinephro – Endlessness
Fontaines D.C. – Romance
Rosali – Bite Down
Jessica Pratt – Here In The Pitch
Styrofoam Winos – Real Time
Sierra Ferrell – Trail of Flowers
Johnny Blue Skies (Sturgill Simpson) – Passage Du Desir
Garrett T. Capps & NASA Country – Everyone Is Everyone
Faux Ferocious – New Sounds
Cindy Lee – Diamond Jubilee
Adrienne Lenker – Bright Future
Father John Misty – Mahashmashana
Hurray For The Riff Raff – The Past Is Still Alive
MJ Lenderman – Manning Fireworks
Chris Acker – Famous Lunch
Duff Thompson – Shadow People II
Lee Baggett – Waves For A Begull
Color Green – Fools Parade
Jeff Parker ETA IVtet – The Way Out of Easy
LA LOM – The Los Angeles League of Musicians
Tim Heidecker – Slipping Away
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – Wild God
Charley Crockett – $10 Cowboy
Gillian Welch & David Rawlings – Woodland
Jake Xerxes Fussell – When I’m Called
Dark Canyon – Long Days, Pleasant Nights
Listen to Old Rookie’s Favorite Records of 2024 Playlist. Apple version HERE
If you’ve made it this far, thank you. In addition to to music mentioned above, there are far more worthy of highlighting.
Cooper Kenward – Dying In A Diner
Mr Sam & The People People – Again! Again!
Kaytranada – Timeless
Kali Uchis – Orquides
Billy Strings – Highway Prayers
Amy Gadiaga – All Black Everything EP
Jack White – No Name
Devin Champlin – Lonesome Splendor In The Circus Tent
Brittany Howard – What Now?
The Smile – Wall of Eyes
Minor Moon – The Light Up Waltz
King Hannah – King Hannah
Kendrick Lamar – GNX
Tyler, The Creator – Chromokopia
Willie Nelson – Last Leaf On The Tree
Swamp Dogg – Blackgrass
Kamasi Washington – Fearless Movement
Bonny Light Horseman – Keep Me On Your Mind / See You Free
Deslondes – Roll It Out
Emily Nenni – Drive & Cry
Ariel Kalma, Jeremiah Chiu, Marta Sofia Honer – The Closest Thing to Silence
Teddy & The Rough Riders – Down Home
Billie Eilish – HIT ME HARD AND SOFT
Helado Negro – PHASOR
Kacey Musgraves – Deeper Well
Walkabouts – Cinema EP
Justin Townes Earle – All In: Unreleased & Rarities
Neil Young – Early Daze
Bob Dylan & The Band – 1974 Live Recordings
Hermanos Gutierrez – Sonido Cosmico
Grateful to be here. Here’s to next year.
Old Rookie 